Wheat Field

1860

French, 1834-1871

Guigou was from Provence, the region in southern France that we associate with later artists Cézanne and Van Gogh, who also painted its fields and hills. He had a visceral feel for open expanses of space and farm chores carried out under the hot sun. His broad brushstrokes and solid swathes of color are typical of artists of the pre-Impressionist generation such as Courbet and Corot. Unfortunately, Guigou never won acclaim during his lifetime and died at the age of thirty-seven.

Oil on canvas

Image: 25 3/8 x 45 13/16 in. (64.5 x 116.3 cm)

Overall: 32 x 52 1/2 in. (81.3 x 133.4 cm)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Corydon Wagner

60.49

Not currently on view

Resources

Exhibition HistorySan Francisco, Calif., San Francisco Museum of Art, Modern Masters in West Coast Collections, 1960. P. 5.

New York, Schweitzer Gallery, Fortieth Anniversary Exhibition, 1970.

Walla Walla, Wash., Whitman College, The Olin Humanities Building Dedication Show, 1972.

New York, William Beadleston, Inc., Paul Guigou Retrospective, Apr. 29-May 30, 1987 (Columbus, Ohio, Columbus Museum of Art, Ohio, June 6-July 12, 1987).

Seattle, Wash., Seattle Art Museum, French Painting from SAM's Permanent Collection, Apr. 23, 2005-Jan. 2, 2006.

Published ReferencesBonnici, Claude-Jeanne. Paul Guigou: 1834-1871. Aix-en-Provence: Edisud, 1989; cat. no. 42, reproduced p. 53, p. 141.

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